As you may have spotted, Government launched a new consultation on 13th January inviting views on the design of a potential single R&D tax relief scheme (merging the Small/Medium Enterprise (‘SME’) and large company RDEC regimes that exist currently). The proposal is that the new scheme should be an ‘above the line’ RDEC like credit, that might then seek to take the best attributes from each regime. Implementation is proposed for accounting periods starting on or after 1 April 2024

Today was an exciting day in the world of R&D as Government published the draft legislation and guidance setting out the changes planned next year. This will be effective for accounting periods starting on or after 1 April 2023 (so for a December year end, the 31 December 2024 R&D claim). In a nutshell: Subcontracted R&D and externally provided workers (and contributions to independent research) only qualify where R&D activities are undertaken in the UK. Narrow exemptions exist but are

A few things to put on your radar to ensure you can make the most of R&D claim opportunities whilst aligning with the rules and latest guidelines. Quinn tax case – HMRC will not appeal You may have seen quite a lot of excitement regarding a taxpayer victory at first tier Tribunal in June 20 that was published recently.  Briefly, HMRC challenged an SME claim as it was argued that the expenditure was subsidised via a client contract. In our

The eagle eyed amongst you may have seen a recent tax case* involving R&D credits that went in HMRC’s favour. Essentially the case reconfirms that the burden of proof sits with the taxpayer to prove that it is undertaking qualifying R&D activities. It seems likely that this case will give renewed vigour to HMRC, fuelling its quest to stamp out the recent trend of flawed SME claims. Genuine claimants should continue to ensure that appropriate records and documentation are retained

The Government recently consulted on the future of R&D Tax Reliefs seeking views from a broad audience.  The consultation considered: definitions, eligibility and scope of the reliefs, to ensure they are up-to[1]date and competitive, and that they reflect how R&D activity is conducted now, how well the reliefs are operating for businesses and HMRC, and whether this could be improved, targeting of the reliefs, to ensure that for every pound of taxpayer support, we maximise the value of the beneficial

As a chartered accountant some would suggest my working life is rather dull (I would disagree of course – helping companies with R&D credits is genuinely fascinating). Recent events have made me reflect on the serious nature of our work as professionals and the importance of ethics and high quality standards. We often hear anecdotally about bad behaviour within the profession and, for years, the steps being taken to curb this have felt too slow and insignificant. But the reality